Anthony Ranaudo

[italstallianion]

Even though the "Adopt a Prospect" thread hadn't been updated, so I don't know if I officially "got" Ranaudo, I figured that I'd start by posting an interesting Baseball Prospectus interview with him.

 

 

 

 

 

Anthony Ranaudo lasted until the 39th pick of this year’s draft, but the 6-foot-7 right-hander might have the highest upside of any hurler selected. The Red Sox certainly hope so, as it took a $2,550,000 signing bonus—an agreement made minutes before the August 16 deadline—to get the LSU flamethrower in the fold. Widely regarded as the top draft-eligible pitcher going into the season, he ultimately fell to Boston in the sandwich round due to an inconsistent junior campaign, concerns about his elbow, and the Scott Boras factor. Ranaudo, who will turn 21 next week, joined the short-season Lowell Spinners after spending the summer pitching in the Cape Cod League.

 

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David Laurila: What has pro ball been like for you so far?

 

Anthony Ranaudo: It’s been fun. It’s a different experience, a new chapter in my life and definitely exciting, even though I won’t be pitching this year. I’m here getting on a specific throwing program, and getting with my teammates and meeting some of the managers and personnel guys, and I can’t wait for the future. For the most part, that future begins for me next year.

 

DL: What value are you getting from those interactions, and from the throwing program?

 

AR: Part of it is realizing that this is a different level from college. It’s called professional baseball and that’s what it is. It’s a life, and a lifestyle, and it’s a job. You go out there every single day and work as hard as you can, and you have an ultimate goal that you work for. You meet people along the way and you work with them, trying to get better every day.

 

Right now, I’m on a basic throwing program. I’m just starting from the bottom, because I took off four weeks after my Cape Cod season. I’ve been throwing from 60 feet for the past week and just jumped up to 90 feet this past week. Eventually I’ll build myself up and work throughout the winter—on the throwing program—leading up to spring training. I also have a strength-and-conditioning program that I’m on right now, just basic lifting and running. That will get more advanced once the offseason comes.

 

DL: Can you elaborate on the throwing program?

 

AR: Every day they have a plan for you with a certain distance that you need to throw from and a certain amount of throws you need to make. Then it adjusts to how your arm feels and how your body feels, and how much they want to build you up and how strong you want to be—the goals you‘re going toward—and stuff like that. That’s the way they’ve structured it.

 

DL: What specifically was the arm issue you had this past season?

 

AR: It was diagnosed as a stress reaction in my bone and it caused some of the muscles in my forearm to tighten up. That was really about it. We took a cautious approach at LSU where we shut me down for a little while, probably a little more than I even needed to, just to play it safe. It was early in the year and I haven’t had any recurring issues since then.

 

DL: You went right down to the wire before coming to terms. Now that it’s in the rear-view mirror, what was the draft-and-sign process like for you?

 

AR: It’s a big sigh of relief, first of all. But it was just business. It was the way it was going to be. All of my advisors told me, “Look, it’s going to come down to the last day, the last couple of minutes, because that’s the way it is. That’s the way the business works, and the way the commissioner’s office works,” and that’s the way that it was. I was 100 percent ready to go back to LSU if the Red Sox didn’t come up with what I thought I deserved, but ultimately they did and I’m very happy and excited to be here. I’m happy that it got done.

 

DL: How much did your performance in the Cape Cod League this summer influence the negotiations?

 

AR: I’m sure it helped. It was right in their backyard, so all of the Red Sox front-office men and their scouts saw me, so I’m sure it helped. I went there more for myself, to kind of just feel good about myself and to get into a routine—get back to being the pitcher that I was. The Red Sox got a chance to see me, and evaluate me further, and I did well. I’m sure that it helped to ultimately convince them that I was healthy and the pitcher I knew I was.

 

DL: Who initiated you pitching on the Cape?

 

AR: I had talked to my advisor, who is my agent now, Scott Boras, and some of his men—some of the guys who work for him, like Bob Brower, Jim Pizzolatto, and Scott Chiamparino. We all sat down and they asked me how I felt toward the end of the year at LSU, and I said, “You know what, I really wish I could have four, five, six more starts; that would be perfect, because my arm feels the best it has all year. I’m finally getting into a rhythm.” They said, “Well, what about going to pitch in summer ball?” I was like, “I haven’t really thought about that.” I sat down with my coaches at LSU and they were open to it; if I came back [to LSU], they’d be OK with it. And it was good for me. I got more innings; I got up to 85 innings for the year. So it was a collective decision between a couple groups of people.

 

DL: After the Red Sox called your name on draft day, what was the first phone call you received?

 

AR: I was actually on a plane when I got drafted. I was flying back from UCLA, so I had about 10 different voice mails when I landed. I had a message from (Red Sox general manager) Theo (Epstein), I had a message from the scouting director, I had a message from the area scout. I had a message from my parents, who were watching it live on TV. To tell you the truth, I don’t even know who the first one to call me was.

 

DL: Were you expecting to have messages when you got off the plane?

 

AR: Yeah. I thought that I might be drafted earlier, so I was kind of expecting to find out even before I got on the plane, but it didn’t happen. I think they were on pick 25 when I got on, so I figured that by the time we landed, which was about two hours later, I would have been drafted and would have messages waiting for me.

 

DL: Which of the calls did you return first?

 

AR: I called my parents first and talked to them about it. It was something I had worked for my entire life, so I wanted to talk to them first. All of the Red Sox messages were saying, “Congratulations, we picked you and we look forward to talking to you in the future. No need to call us back if you don’t want to.” And I don’t think I even called any of them back until the next day, actually. I talked to Theo the next morning.

 

DL: Most fans have seen your scouting reports, but how would you describe yourself as a pitcher?

 

AR: The first thing I’ll say is that I’m competitive and a hard worker. I’m going to go out there and work hard on all of my weaknesses in order to make myself into the best pitcher that I can possibly be. Then, when I toe the rubber, I’m going to compete. I’m going to go after you with a good fastball and I’m going to pitch off of my fastball. I’m very confident in my secondary stuff. I feel that I have a lot of tools that can beat teams. I can last long into games and use a various number of weapons, I guess you could say, as far as my pitches go. But I’d say that the biggest thing is that I’m a competitor. I’m going to battle every time. Even if I don’t have my best stuff, I’m going to give it everything I have and try to get my team a win.

 

DL: Do you consider yourself a power pitcher?

 

AR: Yes. I’ve always been a power pitcher, my whole life. I realize, getting into pro ball, that a 90-95 mph fastball isn’t necessarily a power-power fastball, because there are guys that have the mid- to upper-90s stuff, but I pitch off my fastball a lot, so I still consider myself to have a power fastball. I have good, heavy life on my ball, so a lot of my strikeouts come from elevated fastballs. In that sense, I consider myself a power pitcher,

 

DL: Is your power fastball a four-seamer?

 

AR: It’s a four-seamer, yeah, but I also throw a two-seamer that gets a little run and sink, which I throw in to righties and away to lefties to try to get some ground balls.

 

DL: What else is in your repertoire?

 

AR: I throw a changeup and a spike curve, which is basically a curveball with one of my fingers spiked up. I’ve been throwing it since I was 14; it was the first curveball that I ever learned. I’ve never thrown any other kind of curveball, and I have pretty good command of it, so I feel very comfortable throwing it. It has some tight spin, so I’m able to throw it hard. It gets a lot of downward action.

 

DL: Any final thoughts?

 

 

AR: I’m a team guy. My team comes first. This organization comes first. I’m not working for Anthony Ranaudo, I’m working for the Boston Red Sox and I’m working to get to the major-league level. I’m working as hard as I can to get to the major leagues and hopefully be a very successful front-line starter for the Boston Red Sox.

[italstallianion]

Also, here is Soxprospects.com's scouting report on Ranaudo.

 

 

Was considered the top pitcher in the entire draft class and the second-best overall draft prospect heading into the 2010 season after going 12-3 with a 3.04 ERA and striking out 159 batters in 124.1 innings in 2009 on the way to leading LSU to a national championship. He flashed plus stuff in 2009, including a downhill 91-94 mph fastball, a hard power curveball with plus potential, and a developing changeup, all of which he threw with advanced pitchability and excellent control. But the 6'7" righthander missed time early in 2010 with elbow soreness, and that injury led to major mechanical issues throughout the season. He struggled to regain success during the 2010 campaign in many ways. His fastball never returned to form, losing its tail and its velocity, he never got his feel back for the strike zone, and he often tipped his pitches due to mechanical flaws. All of this resulted in inconsistent and often poor performances. By selecting Ranaudo in the supplemental round of the 2010 draft, the Red Sox took the chance that he will eventually return to his 2009 form. Apparently the team is not overly concerned with his health and believes the mechanical issues to be fixable flaws.

[Meh]

so no TJS will he pitch in winter ball?

[jacksonianmarch]

Sounds like he'll be at instructs but not at winterball

[italstallianion]

Sounds like he'll be at instructs but not at winterball

 

 

I agree.

[italstallianion]

Anthony Ranaudo was named the best prospect in the Cape Cod League by BA.

 

In his last start, he was easily the best pitcher I saw on the Cape," an American League scouting director said. "He was up to 95, sitting at 94-95 in the sixth inning, and he stayed on top of his curveball. It was as good as he's ever been."

[mvp 78]

I'd feel better about that if the Cape league wasn't so pitcher friendly. Nice to see the stamina and velocity up there though!

[italstallianion]

I'd feel better about that if the Cape league wasn't so pitcher friendly. Nice to see the stamina and velocity up there though!

 

 

Even if it was pitcher friendly, I'm sure that there are many good pitchers that Ranaudo beat out to be favoured as the top prospect in the league.

[Spudboy]

Other than the wooden bats, what about the Cape league makes it Pitcher Friendly?

 

Also, BA was not in attendance at every game. I don't recall his name, but many observers felt that Cotuit had the best pitcher this summer.

[mvp 78]

http://www.pointstreak.com/baseball/stats.html?leagueid=166&seasonid=239&view=pitching&orderby=era

 

ERA isn't the greatest stat in the world, but jeez... Is it more than the wooden bats? Not sure, but pitchers tend to pitch to contact since the batting stats are so putrid.

[jacksonianmarch]

Other than the wooden bats, what about the Cape league makes it Pitcher Friendly?

 

Also, BA was not in attendance at every game. I don't recall his name, but many observers felt that Cotuit had the best pitcher this summer.

 

Its a bunch of college guys swinging wood against the best competition in the game. The Cape always seems to invite the best power pitchers to the dance, and couple that with a transition to wood, there is much less scoring.

 

In Ranaudo's case, he showed he was healthy. The biggest thing about Ranaudo is that he reminds me a lot of Brackman. Big guy with a 1-2 punch that is out of this world, but injuries and windup repetition will be their biggest detractors. I think both end up in the pen long term since their respective teams dont have the time to groom them the right way as starters.

[Dojji]

If there were ever two teams that could take the long track with a pitcher, it'd be the Red Sox and the Yankees.

[jacksonianmarch]

Not what I meant. I meant that the Yankees and Sox dont have the time to allow a guy to develop at the big league level. They need to be near finished products when they make it to the bigs.

[italstallianion]

Not what I meant. I meant that the Yankees and Sox dont have the time to allow a guy to develop at the big league level. They need to be near finished products when they make it to the bigs.

 

I don't think that "time" is the best word here. I'd go with something like patience. Because if the Sox have the guy develop at the big league level or develop them in the minor leagues, it still requires time until the player becomes the full package. The difference is, that the Sox and Yankees don't have the patience or the necessity to have the player in the big leagues if he isn't fully developed, primarily because they have the talent to work around the player, and because they are in a tough enough division where they can't afford the player to cause the team to lose games.

 

I agree with your overall point, just not your word choice. "Time" implies that there'd be a difference in the amount of time it takes to develop the player in either scenario, or that the Red Sox and Yankees would develop their players in a different amount of time than other teams.

[jacksonianmarch]

Thanks for putting it the way I meant it. The Yankees and Sox hit the wall when they have a player who has the stuff to dominate AAA but lacks the polish to pitch well in the bigs. Those guys do not benefit from AAA and need to learn the trade at the big league level, which is something that just cannot happen in NY or Boston

[Yaz Sideburn]

Its a bunch of college guys swinging wood against the best competition in the game.

 

it goes both ways. it's the best college hitters as well

[jacksonianmarch]

it goes both ways. it's the best college hitters as well

 

Correct, but pitching has the advantage most of the time anyway and the big change from metal to wood works in their favor too

[Yaz Sideburn]

Correct' date=' but pitching has the advantage most of the time anyway and the big change from metal to wood works in their favor too[/quote']

 

a college pitcher allowing 0 earned runs in 23+ innings against the best college hitters in baseball is pretty damn impressive regardless

[jacksonianmarch]

Absolutely was, no doubt about it.

[italstallianion]

It looks like Ranaudo will be heading to a strength and conditioning program (along with a few other top prospects) rather than heading to the AFL.

[jacksonianmarch]

Thats probably a better long term move to keep him healthy. Although it will delay their ability to evaluate and tweak his arsenal into next season

[Yaz Sideburn]

It looks like Ranaudo will be heading to a strength and conditioning program (along with a few other top prospects) rather than heading to the AFL.

 

we've had pretty good results health wise from other pitchers that have gone through a similar program. it will be good for him longterm and may even help to add some more velocity to his fastball

[Nutriaitch]

Ranaudo threw out the 1st pitch for the LSU game today.

[italstallianion]

In his debut, Ranaudo pitched 5 scoreless innings, allowing 3 hits and a walk, and striking out 4. He threw 75 pitches and topped out at 95 mph.

[WellBefore2004]

Beastly so far. Took his first loss the other day without giving up an ER(3 unearned).

 

Stat line so far in 2011:

 

W L ERA G GS CG SHO SV IP H R ER HR BB SO GO/AO AVG

1 1 0.46 4 4 0 0 0 19.2 10 4 1 0 8 23 0.55 .152

[italstallianion]

http://news.soxprospects.com/2011/06/ranaudo-pitches-well-in-high-debut.html

[jacksonianmarch]

Ranaudo was an afterthought this yr with Barnes storming the minors. But he had a groin injury that cost him 2 months. But since coming back, he has been Daniel Bard level of awful.

 

8GS 1-2 6.69ERA 37.2IP 41H 27BB 27K.

[a700hitter]

Ranaudo has been shut down for the season with a dead arm. He is probably just another busted prospect. To paraphrase Bob Gibson's remark to Tim McCarver when he visited the mound, the only thing Theo knows about pitching is that he can't hit it.

 

Two years ago people were talking about him as being an untouchable. Most guys, even highly sought after draftees, end up on the scrap heap.

[jacksonianmarch]

TINSTAAPP.

[Behindenemylines]

He had injury issues before the Sox drafted him. He fell to them because of that.